Grammar 101: YAY!!!

And how often do you see these mistakes in material put together by a girl who has a Masters at MIT and a PHD at Columbia?

My favorite one is discreet / discrete.

They are actually quite different.

dis·creet
Adjective
Careful and circumspect in one's speech or actions, esp. to avoid causing offense or to gain an advantage.
Intentionally unobtrusive.
Synonyms
circumspect - prudent - cautious - wary - chary - careful

dis·crete
Adjective
Individually separate and distinct.
Synonyms
separate - detached - distinct - abstract

I can't say how many times I have seen a lady's website assuring me that she is discrete. Because I certainly would not want to date a co-joined twin. Originally Posted by TheDoc

Hah yeah you do see that one quite a bit.

And how often do you see these mistakes in material put together by a girl who has a Masters at MIT and a PHD at Columbia? Originally Posted by John Bull

This is just part of the curse that AOL has brought upon the world!

Originally Posted by JessicaKnightly

And how often do you see these mistakes in material put together by a girl who has a Masters at MIT and a PHD at Columbia? Originally Posted by John Bull

They have - hopefully - paid someone to correct these mistakes. And it can happen quite often, sometimes with foreign language students. A friend of mine corrects such materials quite often and it`s a bummer for her how many mistakes she finds, and on top of it hard work to correct, since she has to "adjust the whole sentence" and not only correct errors in spelling. It is not easy for a foreign language student to write scientific material. The sentences, the wording, it all is different in a "second" language.

So, most often you have someone to correct such errors. I doubt any thesis gets out there without having been read and corrected several times by many people.

I wasn't really referring to those who have English as a second or third language, Nina. I was referring to the phonies who tell us how educated they are and then can't write a simple sentence.

lololol


I was in Detroit the other day...driving down the road. Saw a building where the name of the place was painted on the side.

I thought...why would someone name their business FRICAN BRAIDS...as in Fricken? (That's a dumb name.) As I drove closer, I saw they had forgotten to put a better space between the "N" and "A" of the first part of the company name "QUEENA". So I thought it was Queena Frican Braids when it really was Queen African Braids. Their "F" looked like a capital also. That's where the confusion was.

I wasn't really referring to those who have English as a second or third language, Nina. I was referring to the phonies who tell us how educated they are and then can't write a simple sentence. Originally Posted by John Bull

Oh...., well these ones.....

The one that kills me is when someone says "irregardless" instead of "regardless"... even hear news professionals making this mistake,,,, <sigh>

The one that kills me is when someone says "irregardless" instead of "regardless"... even hear news professionals making this mistake,,,, <sigh> Originally Posted by happybanana

That sounds so "German". We have a lot of these words (double no`s), and to translate them in proper english, or use it in a simpler sense often proofs to be difficult . It could be a typical "Nina" mistake )) (lol)

The one thing that makes me crazy is folks who don't know how to use their pronouns. Too many people say things like "It was just he and I" when they should be saying "It was just him and me."
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Rule of thumb: Remove one of the pronouns and the conjunction, and you'll know whether to say 'I' or 'Me.' In the aforementioned example, you wouldn't say "It was just I," you'd say "It was just me," so when you add the conjunction and the second pronoun, you get "It was just him and me." Originally Posted by Poet Laureate

It drives me crazy when I hear someone say something like "Me and John are going to the store." It is so commonplace in today's world that I'm afraid it is becoming acceptable. It is SO wrong.

Came across this today:

Oooh, I just love spelling and grammar ;-) Thanks so much for this entertaining thread! So funny how even some web designers claim they'll give you a more 'professional' image, yet they have spelling & grammar mistakes throughout their own sites and ads :-/

TheDoc already mentioned the main one I always see, 'discrete' instead of 'discreet'. I just recently came across an agency in toronto whose whole site (and domain name) has it spelled wrong: http://elitediscrete.com/ (ouch!)

Others I see all the time are:

"hope I've peaked your interest" (instead of piqued)
"a man that appreciates quality" (instead of a man who)
"enjoy my photo's" (and other plurals)
"totally independant" (instead of independent)
"first-class accomodations" (instead of accommodations)

Tip: If you're claiming to have an advanced degree, you're probably charging a little more also. Go ahead and spring for a few extra bucks to have your ads and site text reviewed by a professional, if it's not included with your web design.

On a side note: Cumalot, you officially win my personal award for 'Sickest Avatar'!




.

To follow up on Holly's post, I received this email today:

"So sense I have received so many interests in your city, you have peaked my interest."

This is a 16 word sentence and she misused four of them, for a 25% failure rate. That's hard to beet.

In regards....correct way >> in regard. Also alot is actually a lot. Two words, not too words. Lol